One man stands out in Halloween 4. Sasha Jenson’s horny store clerk, Brady. He turns out to be the film’s most embattled victim as I found out during a Halloween re-watch of this entertaining franchise-filler.

Poor Brady. In Halloween 4 he doesn’t catch a break all day.

The character – “slasher film victim no.13798” – is your prototypical genre creation. He’s young. He’s cocky. He’s good looking. And he’s horny. Unfortunately for him, his girlfriend can’t “put out” on Halloween night because she’s having to babysit her foster sister. That’s just a small part of his very bad day.

The film sees the return of Michael Myers after a one-film absence for a bit of R&R and the “season of the witch”, returning to his old hunting ground of Haddonfield to stalk and slash his way through another bunch of hapless victims. One of those victims is Brady, played by Sasha Jenson.

Jenson, the son of a stuntman, is perhaps best know for playing Don in Richard Linklater’sDazed and Confused. After his debut in 1986, Halloween 4 was one of a bunch of movies in he made that were released in 1988. As we’ll find out, it’s a role he rightly should be remembered for.

It isn’t just death-by-Michael that afflicts poor Brady

There are lots of victims in Halloween 4. It’s to be expected. This is, after all, a Michael Myers film. And as everyone who has ever seen a Halloween film knows, the “embodiment of evil” likes to wield a big knife and silence all screams for good.

Thankfully for a lot of these victims, they’re throwaway fodder from the screenwriter’s pen. Men and women with a single dimension, a few minutes or even seconds of screen time and maybe not even an actual name. Brady’s different. He appears in the film throughout. He’s not in every scene but he’s an ever-present.

Our introduction to him at a local shop where he works is actually the brightest moment of his day. It’s here that he wins a $10 bet with a friend who thinks, wrongly, he can get a date with the Sheriff’s daughter Kelly (played by Kathleen Kinmont). In hindsight, given Brady’s fate, the $10 win is akin to writer Alan B. McElroy and director Dwight H. Little enjoying a sadistic chuckle amongst themselves.

It begins with a smashed mirror

Smashing a mirror isn’t good news if you’re superstitious.

To be fair to Brady, he isn’t the one who smashes this particular mirror. That honour goes to Jamie Lloyd (Danielle Harris) who believes she sees Michael Myers when trying on a Halloween costume.

But poor Brady. Who else is going to clear up the mess in the store? While Jamie and her sister have a cuddled, tell each other everything will be okay, and leave, Brady is left to clean up. His night has been ruined and now he’s cleaning up someone else’s mess.

Things go from bad to worse despite some good fortune

Okay, so Brady gets the Sheriff’s daughter. It turns out the pair, who worked in the same shop together, had been eyeing each other up. After his girlfriend ditches him to go trick or treating, the horny young man jumps into the nearest bed. Or in this case, the living room sofa in front of a roaring log fire.

But wait a minute. This is Brady. One of the unluckiest souls of the slasher genre.

Everything is going well. Clothes are coming off and bases are being rounded. But then the Sheriff turns up. Yes, Dad is here. If he catches the pair in their current state he’s going to, as Kelly states: “skin you alive”.

Brady has had to put the breaks on at the last minute. It’s a wonder how he can stand up straight.

It can’t get any worse can it?

Yes, it can get worse. Of all the houses in all of Haddonfield, Brady’s girlfriend (or is that former girlfriend) arrives at the Sheriff’s daughter’s home while trick or treating and finds Kelly dressed only in a t-shirt. Behind her is Brady, trying to do his best innocent pose. BUSTED!

But now, after Brady and Kelly’s attempts at the physical act of love are halted, the Sheriff has turned up with a bunch of people at the house. One of those people is the girl he’s just cheated on. AWKWARD!

And then he gets mangled

After all that misfortune, his destiny lies at the feet of Michael Myers. He fights valiantly but of course nothing goes right for him. For instance, the shotgun he has doesn’t fire when he wants it to.

It all adds up to Brady being one of the slasher genre’s most unlucky victims. You’ve got to feel some sympathy for him. Surely?

About the Author

Dan Stephens is the founder and editor of Top 10 Films. He's usually pondering his next list, often inspired by his adoration for 1980s Hollywood, a time-travelling DeLorean and an adventurous archaeologist going by the name Indiana.

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